Ross-shire councillors plot breakaway for 'massive' ward to tackle area's sharply contrasting challenges
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Size matters when it comes to Highland Council affairs as four members of the largest ward in Europe prepare to leave a local area committee and go it alone.
Ward five – Wester Ross, Lochalsh and Strathpeffer – councillors have taken the first step to form their own group by leaving the Ross and Cromarty committee, most of whose members are clustered around Easter Ross.
Citing their ward’s unique position in the local authority area, Councillors Biz Campbell, Ian Cockburn, Alex MacInnes and Derek Macleod tabled a motion for a financial and administrative feasibility study which has been agreed.
That would see them allocated their own area budget with which to tackle some of the problems faced in the 9700 square kilometre ward, which is larger than Cyprus.
Proposing the motion, Councillor Derek Macleod said: "As the largest council ward by area, which is also larger than 92 per cent of parliamentary constituencies in the UK and in Europe, ward 5 has many diverse needs which largely differ from the other wards which make up the Ross and Cromarty area committee.
“We, as elected members, wish to establish a separate area committee serving ward five which will be able, in line with the scheme of delegation, to determine the budget and service priorities for the unique area which we have been elected to serve.”
Cllr Cockburn said the specific issues faced by the members and residents demanded a more focussed approach not best suited to the Ross and Cromarty committee.
“One thing about the ward is that is 9700 km square, in the motion it states that it is bigger than 92 per cent of parliamentary constituencies but it is also the biggest council ward in the whole of Europe – it is massive.
“Even myself from where I live to get to Glenelg it take about two hours, to get to Achiltibuie where I go to community council meetings it is an hour and 45 minutes – in the winter it can be two and quarter, depending.
“It is absolute murder to get about but we’ve got dispersed communities all over the place with all different aspects of problems, from problems like you’ve got in areas like Strathpeffer, Contin down to Strathconon, down to Glenelg it is different in Gairloch from what it is in Ullapool.
“All over our area we’ve got different problems and we’ve only got four councillors and we’ve got to really take time to get into these problems and we have to know the facts and the figures.”
No members objected and the motion will now see a report delivered in June to Highland Council about the potential finance and make-up of the new committee.
